How to hail a self-driving Uber if you're in Pittsburgh

The popular ride-hailing service started its endeavor into the
driverless car space by poaching around 40 engineers from Carnegie
Mellon University's National Robotics Engineering
Centre back in January. Since that time, Uber has acquired self-driving truck startup Otto for
$300 million, and agreed to a $300 million alliance with Volvo to build self-driving
cars.

And starting Wednesday, Uber will debut its efforts to the
public by allowing select passengers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania,
to hail a ride in one of its self-driving cars. At first the
rides will be free, but an Uber spokesperson said that may change
in time.

Business Insider/Danielle
Muoio

Unfortunately, just because you live in or are visiting
Pittsburgh doesn't mean you'll get to hail a ride. Uber will send
emails to its most "loyal" customers early Wednesday morning.
Uber declined to clarify how many customers will get an email and
what exactly qualifies as loyal, but the company did tell
Business Insider that how often a user hails a ride played a role
in determining loyalty.

But don't be too hurt if you use Uber frequently and still
don't get an invite — it also depends on location. Uber's cars
can only operate in a limited area like downtown Pittsburgh and
in the Shadyside neighborhood, so those who hail frequently in
those locations are more likely to be chosen to
participate.

Business Insider/Danielle
Muoio

If you get an invite, you first have to agree that you're
OK getting picked up in one and being filmed during the ride.
Uber is using the footage to gauge how people respond to being in
a self-driving car so that it can figure out ways to reconfigure
the ride experience to ensure people feel
comfortable.

"This Pittsburgh pilot is our opportunity for real-world
testing, so we can learn more about what makes riders feel
comfortable and safe, and can continue to improve the Uber
self-driving experience," said Emily Bartel, product manager at
Uber's Advanced Technologies Center.

Business Insider/Danielle
Muoio

Once you confirm that you're okay trying out Uber's
self-driving car experience, you can hail it by calling an UberX
in the app. The app will alert you that a self-driving car is
coming.

Once you're inside, you'll also have to confirm that you're
ready to ride and that there aren't more than two passengers in
the car. Uber places a limit because an engineer will take up the
front seat to assess how the car is handling everything. There's
also a driver present to take over in case anything goes
wrong.

You must also enter your route before the trip begins
and cannot alter it at any point because the cars are
geographically limited as to where they can drive.

From my experience, being in a self-driving Uber felt a lot
like riding in a typical car. It's definitely worth giving it a
shot so you can see the tech firsthand.